Acini di Pepe © Denzil Green Acini di Pepe are very small pasta, about the size of peppercorns (hence their name, which means just that in Italian, though they are actually smaller than that, about the size of a grain of couscous.) They are made from semolina. They’re meant to be cooked in and served…
Pasta for Salads
Annelli Pasta
Rings of pasta to be used in soups and salads. Annellini are tiny versions of Annelli for soup. Substitutes Other shaped pasta for soups such as acini di pepe, conchigliette, ditaloni, semini di merlo, nocchette. Language Notes Annelli means rings; in Annellini, the -ini at the end means small.
Cavatappi (aka Scoobi Doo)
Cavatappi © Denzil Green Cavatappi are thick, corkscrew shaped tubes of pasta, that are usually ridged as well on their outsides. They hold chunky sauces well, and are also good in baked pasta dishes. In North America, it is often sold labelled as “Scoobi doo” pasta, for reasons unclear. Cooking Tips Cavatappi is very good…
Farfalle
Farfalle © Denzil Green Farfalle is a pasta about 1 ½ inches (4 cm) long that is shaped like a butterfly, or a bow-tie if you like. Farfalle is a classic pasta to serve with a plain tomato sauce that you will serve with olive oil at the table, as the shape will capture both…
Fusilli
Fusilli © Denzil Green Fusilli is a spiral / corkscrew shaped dried pasta. It has grooves in it that is good at capturing and holding onto sauce. The “col buco” versions have hollow insides. Cooking Tips Good for pasta salads; cook to al dente. History Notes Fusilli pasta were originally developed in Southern Italy by…
Gemelli
Gemelli is an Italian pasta shape. It looks like two strands of spaghetti-like pasta twisted together, in a spiral form. The pasta holds sauce well. It can also be used baked pasta dishes, or pasta salads. Cooking Tips Boil in salted water until tender to the bite. Substitutes Fusilli, farfalle, macaroni, penne, rigatoni, or ziti…
Macaroni
Macaroni is pasta made in a slightly curved, tubular shape with a hollow centre. It is a good pasta for baking or for using in pasta salads. The most popular use for macaroni in English-speaking countries is in the baked dish called Macaroni and Cheese. In the UK, prior to this, the most popular use…
Mostaccioli Pasta
Mostaccioli Pasta is a hollow tube pasta very similar to penne. It is cut about 2 inches (5 cm) long, though sometimes about 1 inch (2 ½ cm) long. It comes with either smooth or ridged sides. The ends are “French cut” on a slant. It can be used for baking, or for salads. Substitutes…
Orzo Pasta
Orzo Pasta © Denzil Green Orzo is an Italian dried pasta. Each piece of the pasta is the size and shape of an unprocessed grain of barley, which is what “orzo” means in Italian, “barley.” [1] The pasta is an off-white colour. Traditionally, orzo is used in soups or in chilled salads, or as a…
Rice Vermicelli
Rice Vermicelli © Denzil Green Rice Vermicelli are thin, long, almost translucent Asian noodles made from rice flour and water. They have no flavour of their own, but absorb the flavour of what they are cooked with. They are used in cold noodle salads, soups, spring rolls and stir-fries. The noodles are sold dried in…
Tapenade Pasta Salad
This fabulous composed salad is almost a meal in itself. The strong, zippy taste and fresh look will tempt flagging appetites in the summer heat — but the salad is also hearty enough to be satisfying in the winter.
Tomato & Mozzarella Pasta Salad
This combines all the great Italian flavours with the colours of the Italian flag: red, white and green.
Tuna and Anchovy Pasta Recipe
A full-flavoured pasta dish that can be served warm, or chilled as a pasta salad.
Tuna Pasta Salad with Pesto
This is a tuna pasta salad that uses a jar of pesto as the dressing: it looks and tastes sophisticated, yet is dead easy to toss together, and very, very good.